Part of Clint Eastwood's "Dirty Harry" Larkspur train trestle removed for new bridge

Part of an old railroad trestle — famously used for the 1971 movie "Dirty Harry" — is being removed this week as a new pedestrian overpass is built across busy Sir Francis Drake Boulevard near the Larkspur Ferry Terminal.

The new steel truss bridge essentially follows the alignment of the old railroad trestle, part of a rail line built in the 1880s. A section of the wooden trestle was removed in 2003 after it was damaged by a truck. That was the section from where Eastwood first glares at a serial killer dubbed "Scorpio," then jumps onto a school bus he is driving before doing away with the villain at the old Hutchinson's Rock Quarry, north of where the ferry terminal now stands.

Now another 200 feet of the trestle's remaining 1,000 feet is being yanked down to make way for the new bridge.

"It is a wooden structure with a lot of creosote and it would be very close to the new bridge," said Bill Whitney, project manager for the Transportation Authority of Marin. "There were concerns about it catching fire and causing damage to the new bridge. It could also deteriorate and collapse at some point. It is a safety issue."

The new bridge will start near the Cal Park Hill Tunnel, cross the busy boulevard, and deposit people on an east-west pathway. The new structure also will make it easier for bikers to travel north and south through the county. The bridge is 291 feet long, with the span over Sir Francis Drake Boulevard at 144 feet. There is a clearance of 17.5 feet.

Ghilotti Bros. Inc. of San Rafael bid $9.4 million to do the work on what is dubbed the "Central Marin Ferry Connection Multi-Use Pathway." The project will take about one year to complete. The project is being funded by money from 2004's voter-approved Regional Measure 2, which raised Bay Area state bridge tolls by $1, and federal "non-motorized" transportation funding via the county.

"The bridge will mean that cyclists and pedestrians alike can cross Sir Francis Drake Boulevard safely, including getting to and from the ferry," said Jim Elias, executive director of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition. "It's the culmination of 10-plus years of collaborative efforts."

In December 2010 the revamped Cal Park Hill Tunnel, an 1,100-foot tube, was opened at a cost of $28 million with the financing split between the county and Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit agency.

The tunnel, which is 30 feet wide and 25 feet tall, has been divided, part of it dedicated to the rail right of way to deliver trains to Larkspur and the ferry, the other to bicycle and pedestrian use. Federal dollars are being sought by SMART to extend the train through the tunnel and to Larkspur.

If that happens, train passengers will be able to use the new bridge to get to the ferry terminal, and to boats going into San Francisco.

Since the reopening of the Cal Park Hill Tunnel bicyclists and pedestrians have had a quicker way to get from San Rafael to Larkspur. But in order to continue on to the Larkspur Ferry Terminal they need to cross a parking lot and busy intersections on Sir Francis Drake. The new structure will assist that travel, transportation officials say.